Sunday, January 6, 2013

Well folks, the day has finally come! I don't think I've been this excited for something since my wedding day two years ago. Seriously. That's how much I love Downton. Many of you guessed from my hints that my favorite character is Lady Violet, the Dowager Countess and from the sound of it, I am not alone. She really does add such a lively element to the show, which is why I couldn't help but design this KAL project around her. The photo above features the accessory that inspired this KAL. In Season One, Lady Violet wears black, ruched, lacy fingerless gloves (though they were probably called gauntlets in 1912) to dinner and I couldn't help but be inspired to knit something similar but a tad more practical for modern times. Adorned with a Rosebud Lace pattern (inspired by her award wining roses) and some other pretty details that will be revealed as the KAL progresses, these gauntlets would surely please the Dowager Countess to no end. So without further adieu, I give you Clue # 1 for Lady
Violet’s Dinner Gauntlets!If you are just now jumping in and have managed to miss my first blog post, be sure to go back and read that before reading this one. Alright, lets get this prim and proper dinner party started. Shall we?

-US Size 3
Double Point Needles or needles for preferred method for working in
the round (adjust needle size if necessary to obtain gauge.)

-US size G
or H Crochet hook for provisional cast on.

-DK or
Worsted weight waste yarn for provisional cast on

-Darning
needle

-Any
episodes of Downton Abbey to watch as you knit!

Abbreviations:

k- Knit

p-purl

sts-
stitches

k2tog- knit
two stitches together

k3tog- knit
three stitches together

ssk- slip,
slip, knit. Slip one stitch onto the right needle knit wise and one
stitch onto the right needle purlwise, then insert the left needle
into both stitches through the front loop and knit the two together.

yo- yarn
over, bring the yarn to the front as if to purl, knit the next
stitch.

K1f&b-
knit into the front of the stitch knitwise, then before dropping the
stitch off the left needle, knit into the back of the same stitch
again. Also known as a “bar increase.”

sl 1- slip
one stitch knitwise

psso- pass
the slipped stitch over (from right to left)

*If
you need help with any of these terms, knittinghelp.com has a
wonderful glossary of abbreviations!

Measurements:

One Size:
7.75” (19.5 cm) circumference at top of arm when laying flat and
stretches to fit a 9”-9.5” (23-24 cm) arm circumference.

Other
measurements will be specified as pattern clues are released.

*Note on
getting the right fit: Measure your arm circumference about 4.5”-5”
(12-13cm) above the wrist joint. (Please see picture below if you are
unclear on where to measure.) If you feel you need a little more or
less room in this area, feel free to add or remove a few stitches to
needles 1 and/or 3 based on how much larger or smaller you need. For
example, if you want to subtract ½” remove about 3 sts. If you
want to add ½” add 3 sts. Remember that knitted fabric is pretty
stretchy so be careful not to overdo it.

Yep, I drew on my arm with permanent marker.

Also, this
pattern contains a vertical drawstring that allows you to
customize the fit a bit. This gauntlet is supposed to fit slightly
loose and cinch to fit a bit snugger. Please take that into
consideration when you make adjustments.

If you think
you might need to adjust but aren’t sure, take your arm
measurements and post on the Downton KAL- Knitting Questions thread in the JBWgroup on Ravelry and ask your fellow KAL participants for help! If
all else fails, feel free to send an e-mail. We’ll help you through
it!

Using a
Fingering Weight yarn instead?

If you are
knitting this with smaller needles and lighter yarn etc. you will
need your gauge (# of sts per 1”) to figure out how many stitches
to cast on following this simple formula:

Gauge x Arm Circumference= # Cast on Sts

For example
if my gauge is 7 sts per 1” and my arm measures 8” around I
will want to cast on 56 sts.

Gauge:

26 sts and
36 rows to 4” (10cm) in Stockinette stitch knit flat.

Directions (Right-Hand Gauntlet):

-Using a
Crochet Provisional Cast-on and your waste yarn, cast on 52sts.-Knit one row with project yarn (all stitches on the needles should now be in your "real" yarn, not your scrap yarn)

-Divide on to 3 DPNs or (or for whichever method you are using) and join for
knitting in the round.-Knit 4 rounds.

-If knitting
on double point needles, divide sts onto three needles as follows:

-Needle
1: 14 sts

-Needle
2: 25 sts

-Needle
3: 13 sts

*If you’ve
cast on more or fewer than 52 sts, adjust the # of sts on Needles 1
and 3 only. Needle #2 MUST have
25 sts on it.

Work all sts
as follows on the corresponding needles. On Needle 1, an eyelet
pattern will be worked that will be used to run a drawstring through
to adjust the length and fit of the gauntlets. Needle 2 is where the optional
lace panel will be worked simultaneously with the eyelets on Needle
1. Needle 3 will be knit in stockinette every round for most of the
pattern.

*Please see
notes at the bottom of this section if you are knitting this pattern
on Magic Loop or two circulars as your set up will be slightly
different.

*Repeat lace
section once more for a total of two times while also following instructions for Needle 1. If you are wanting to simplify the pattern, omit this lace panel and instead knit every row in place of the lace section.

Needle 3:

Knit every
rnd until pattern says otherwise.

If you
are using Magic Loop or two circulars:

The
beginning of your round will be the lace panel and the end of the
round will be the eyelets. You will put 25 sts on the front needle
and 27 sts on the back needle. Work Front needle as Needle 2 and back
panels as needle 3 and 1 in that order. The start of each new round
for you is between where “needle 1” and “needle 2” would
join.

Well folks, this brings us to the end of Episode # 1 and Clue #1. This was a pretty big clue as I needed to set you up wit info for the entire project so this will probably be the longest post and set of directions in the KAL. Of course, if you have any questions or anything seems unclear, please feel free to private message me on Ravelry or post it to the Ravelry group! We are all there to help you!I hope you all enjoy the first episode tonight and look forward to discussion on Monday! Happy knitting!KristenPS. If you would like to print this page, the easiest and best way to do it is to copy all of the text and paste it into a word document. Then, print the word document. Easy peasy. :) The PDF of the pattern will be available once the KAL is over.